Gala
by Daniele-Marx
Summary: Not all galas have to end with something dramatic or tragic. This is my proof. Poor Heero...


"Gala"

By

DanieleMarx  
  
Standard disclaimer applies.

This is a short, most likely one-shot concerning Heero's thoughts while he waits for Relena.  
  
Heero looked around at the crowd of patrons of the ESUN, waiting for Relena to appear at the top of the stairs. It was an incredibly important night for her and the rest of the world because it was the one night that people celebrated peace without mentioning work. Normally it would have been an informal gathering with several speeches, but they decided to keep it down to a bare minimum, to let their hair down so to speak. This time around they were changing things around to suit them better, which was to dress formally and speak less seriously. He wore a black tuxedo with his normal shaggy hairstyle as he stood tall for her.

Duo had shown up with Hilde earlier, both looking well-dressed and relaxed, ready for their worry-free night off. Duo had been compliant in wearing the tuxedo Hilde had suggested, which struck Heero as unnatural. He had managed to keep his braid from being reshaped into something completely different than it was already. It hadn't been too long ago when Hilde would try to convince him to try a different style, and he almost had to fight her off with both tooth and claw. Her efforts were unsuccessful. Duo's braid lie behind him as usual, and Heero wondered fleetingly if his opinion of the pilot would've changed if the braid had been missing. Probably not. Hilde wore a black gown made of a soft silk which was in halter form. The bottom half of the gown was slitted to the lower thigh and Duo seemed to feel a bit more confident about their relationship than he had been earlier in the year when he finally gathered up the courage to propose to her. They had exchanged greetings with Heero and moved on to later tidings.

Quatre had appeared next with Dorothy Catalonia on his arm, both greeting him as well; their appearances just made him more nervous and anxious since he was usually the one who stood behind the shadows, watching and waiting, daring for someone to attack and ruin the event. At least I would've been doing something other than waiting, he thought. He didn't move to show his discomfort as he knew Duo would've. He knew Trowa and Wufei were on the clock tonight, and wondered why he wasn't as well, but knew he had his reasons. Every once in a while the two would come into eye contact with him and reassure him that things were going perfectly, which soothed his nerves a bit.

Every once in a while someone he was familiar with approached him and greeted him, speaking of the events and asking him questions about his life and he would answer in low detail, which is what they half-expected. They then went on to their business. Heero continued to wait, wondering if Relena was well. The gala hadn't officially begun yet, but as guests arrived he became more anxious, but hid it well. The air was becoming stuffy as each couple passed him to make their way across the wood paneled floor. He had only danced with Relena when he had acted on the impulse which, sadly, he could count them on one hand. She made him feel very secure, but when she made him wait he became anxious just knowing she wasn't appearing at the top of those steps. He took unnoticeable deep breaths and kept his focus as his heart sent out horrible warnings that were the cause of his nervousness, but he managed to beat them down to a pulp before continuing to wait for her.

There was no way she was going to forget about him, not after all they had gone through. There was no way anything could go wrong tonight. Not when he wanted everything to be just right. He could have sworn when she had invited him that both of their hearts had skipped that one little beat and a spark of pure joy flashed across their eyes; he was good at hiding his emotions naturally, but he found it harder to hide them from her. A serenade began to play from the stage.

Heero glanced over to see Duo escorting Hilde to the dance floor from the table reserved for the six of them. Hilde seemed to mold into Duo as they began to waltz with one another and Heero looked away from them, noticing Trowa on the second level landing next to one of the many columns surrounding the ballroom. Trowa seemed alert for anything and Heero knew nothing had come up yet, which was an all around good thing. Trowa looked at him encouragingly, and knew he knew he was nervous. As If he knew exactly what Heero was thinking, Trowa held up his hand and signed a message to him, saying, 'three minutes.' Heero nodded and Trowa smiled lightly, moving on. Not every one of these events had horrible circumstances because they still held galas. There would be a shortage of social events if it weren't for the Preventers and the work they did.

He could recall perfectly the conversation with Lady Une when he rejected the assignment to work security for the gala. She hadn't reacted exactly as he assumed, noting the smile and the phrase that made him reassert himself. "It's about time, Yuy."

He often wondered how long everyone had been conspiring against him, but then brushed it off as nothing but nonsense before making the preparations for his next 'mission,' which was to escort Relena to the nearest boutique to help her pick out the gala. It was her one half-day off until the event and, considering he was her date, she wanted him to pick out what she would wear. He recalled their conversation about one of the dresses he selected and discovered that his sharp eye made his fashion sense quite sharp, which he still does not look back at with too much pride. Should Duo or the others find out about this he wouldn't be able to live it down.

Suddenly, he saw her appear at the top of the staircase; his breath caught momentarily. Even though she had him approve her gown, he had never expected his reaction would be different than what he had felt earlier. This would be in the sense that she was in sweats earlier and he hadn't really paid any mind to the thought of seeing her in her formalwear. Relena was wearing a long, midnight blue gown which brought out the color in her eyes; it was halter style as well, but was more full than Hilde's gown. She adorned her hands with a lovely yet simple silver bracelet and a silver hairclip that held back just enough hair to made it look relaxed compared to the usual business style she adorned. Becoming more beautiful every time he laid his eyes on her had become his favorite past time to encounter. She never knew about one of the reasons he stared at her with such a seriousness that she could only suck in a light breath and take it, but after a while he could only hold a smirk in for so long. What she didn't know was that he was always intrigued by how well she kept herself when under extreme stress or pressure as a political icon.

He could tell that she was very content with the way the gala had worked out; and then she saw him. She was normally one who blushed easily but instead of having an embarrassing redness that crept up through her cheeks and obvious, she displayed one of slight vanity and began to descend the stairs. One thing that was sure was a beautiful smile which wasn't able to leave her face. It felt as if his throat had gone dry finally considering he was probably gaping like a fool. Was that his mouth slightly open? He sternly shut it and didn't remove his stare from her eyes.

Among Heero, several others noticed the arrival of their beloved leader and watched as she approached the young man waiting at the bottom of the stairs for her with the grace and regalness of royalty. It was apparent that they were mystified by one another. Among them was Duo and Hilde, who were just taking their seats after the first waltz; they had been put at the same table as the rest of their close friends and were waiting patiently for Relena to appear. At this point many of the patrons had gone somewhat silent, some of them continuing their dances and lost in their own moments of happiness, which was what Relena had been hoping to accomplish through the event.

As Relena reached the bottom step, Heero held his hand up to hold her own, and kissed it gently before lifting it up in turn so as to assist her down from the last step; she landed gracefully and they both glided towards the dance floor, not saying anything lest it come out and disturb the seemingly quiet moment. Her eyes, pools of aquamarine, made it hard for him to breathe, but that was what he often associated with her; it didn't stop him from craving the feeling.

They glided onto the dance floor and stopped slowly, facing towards one another before taking their position for a waltz. His hand found its way around her waist while hers rested with a feather-like weight on his shoulder; their hands found one another with such an ease; her eyes watched the motion as he watched her. Eyes that weren't focused on them had made their way over to their solid yet graceful movements and watched as the two began to dance with fluid movements to the soft and charming waltz which churned through the air.

This night would be perfect after all.


End file.
